The Ren: Expedition to Lothal - The Crystal Quest

[Kyrel Ren]

Kyrel had had enough. Too long had he been hidden like this,and he honestly couldn't hold his rage back any longer. He glared at @D'vok Windroamer and let out a chuckle that was boomed through the vocabulater,and made it sound almost frightening. He quickly attempted to grab the man by the shirt collar and lifted him up with ease due to his cybernetic strength. He had enough of this sleemo and he would not tolerate any further delays. He sheathed his vibroblades ,and than proceeded to reach behind his cape to produce a Hilt.

With a snap hiss the unstable red blade sprouted to life, crackling with intense ferocity that it looked like it barely held together. He looked at the man a scowl was growing underneath the mask. His yellow eyes replacing the normal black color of the irises. His rage could be felt clearly now,like a dark storm out in a sea in the middle of a calm and tranquil day. There was no point in hiding now,and he had now seemed to lose all patience for such games. If he was ever going to reach his desired crystal it surely wasn't going to be through stealth at least not anymore.

He had sensed a Duel brewing somewhere along. It must have been Castor who finally blew there cover. Now Kyrel had no qualms of doing what he was attempting to do at the moment. He angled the blade so the tip was pointing at his face. The unstable blade illuminating his scruffy face. Kyrel said to him angrily and impatiently losing the droid facade he was so pathetically attempting earlier. "Enough...I suggest you do take my sister's advice here,or I might just skin you alive,and leave you as a warning sign out in front of the cave. The choice is yours?"

[member="Isla Ashen"] [member="HK-36"] [member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Progflaw99]

--- --- ---​

Location: Lothal, Mountain Range, Interior Cavern​

Status: Engaging​

--- --- ---​

​

Taking another deep breath, Castor continued to stoke the flames burning inside of himself, fire coursing through his veins. If he wasn't careful it was possible he would lose control enough to make a fatal mistake, he wouldn't let that happen. Forcing himself to listen he watched the girl carefully. The cackling energy of the crimson blade punctuated the low hum of both sabers as she spoke. Castor's eyes bored into the girl's. What game was she playing at? Leave peacefully without the exact thing he'd come here for? No... she had to know that wasn't an option. Sure, maybe the others had gotten crystals already but he needed that crystal and who was this girl to say he hadn't earned it, he and he alone had extracted it from the granite wall. Castors eyes flicked to the ceiling of the widened cavern, stalactites hung there... but not for long. As the power coursing through his body rose to a peak, he narrowed his eyes, energy being flung into the moorings of the rock, a deep rumble and they began to loosen, dust and pebbles falling to the ground.

As the ceiling shook he felt a sharp piercing presence on the edge of his consciousness, he had been entirely focused on the girl in front of him. Where the man had come from he had no clue, he certainly hadn't appeared from the two entrances behind the girl, and the only other way into the cavern was the way they had come - while it was not impossible, he doubted anyone's ability to advance through their entire party without being detected. He would have pondered it longer but Castor was a man of action and as such, he took a calculated risk. In a fraction of a second his body surged with the power of the Dark Side, the presence behind him confirmed by the ignition of yet another lightsaber, this one casting an amethyst light into the cavern. Lowering his blade to the side at first, he flung his arms up, building momentum and propelling himself with the force. As his feet began to lift off the floor his body began to spin with the momentum of his arms. Spinning several times while in the air he let out an unnatural screech as he let the Dark Side of the Force consume him.

Keeping his body moving he shot over the girl, likely startled. He had no misconceptions that she wouldn't have been prepared and so his maneuver was meant more to evade the presence behind him and position himself beyond where Jamie stood, to at least get both of his soon to be foes on the same side. Finishing his spinning leap with a roll he quickly bounced back to his feet, dust rising from where he'd disturbed the ground. Rising to full height he grinned as he brought the saber in front of him, grasping the hilt with two hands. Now that the two Jedi were at least in front of him, he spoke once more, slowly breathing in and out.

"You don't truly believe going free is an option here do you... Jamie?" He said, using the girl's name.​

​

Names were powerful things, used to invoke feelings of fear, anger, love, hate... for they held meaning. And for those to which they held none, there were even more weaknesses. The girl spoke like a true politician, in fact Castor almost swore he heard a bit of nobility in her voice, a cultured accent hidden beneath the normal day to day speech of a practiced rhetoric. The new presence he greeted with caution. This man was clearly the more dangerous of the two, at least in theory. Castor was no fool however, to discount an enemy based solely on power was foolish and more often than not would leave one open to the unexpected.​

​

"I don't think your friend here has the same intention."​

​

Castor raised his head towards the new arrival. This man's presence was similar to the girl's but there was something much less diplomatic in his demeanor and as he spoke Castor's lips turned to a sneer. Arrogance, to an extent he was not exempt of this trait but he would willingly admit it, this Jedi however would likely not. He could feel the fringes of his presence, there was a subtle edge to it. Warily, without looking upwards, he watched the ceiling in his peripherals. Directly above where he and Jamie had been standing the stalactites had been loosened but not quite enough to break free. His grip firm and his stance balanced, Castor waited.​

​

​

Spoiler

Ren​

[member="Isla Ashen"] | [member="Samka Derith"]​

[member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Brennan Cabrol"]​

(And our Resident Sith [member="Darth Veles"])​

​

Other​

[member="Aela Talith"] | [member="Desmond C'artyom"]​

[member="Jamie Pyne"] | [member="Siriwook"]​

[member="Zark"] | [member="Tanomas Graf"]​

[member="Taeli Raaf"] | [member="Thyra Sunborne"]​

[member="Aerion Ivelisse"] | [member="D'vok Windroamer"]​

​

​

 

[Tanomas Graf]

Fear swept through the features of the old man as he stood in front of the one person he would never want to be on the bad side of, the Mon Calamari Sith Lord. What seemed like an hour passed turned out to be merely a few seconds as he heard the older man speak. A 'Hmpf' of derision left Graf before he could feel his throat feel like it was being grasped by an invisible hand, so this was the Force? His vision was starting to darken until he closed his eyes, being steadily consumed by darkness, until a small but bright light perked out within his mind, he remembered the special item he had brought.

Weakly dropping the heavy blaster it looked as if the old man was about to give up when the Sith Lord had said something about his retirement. Focusing on the power within him that he had fought so hard to suppress, he could feel his arm trembling as a small metallic object dropped into his hand from his sleeve. Pressing down hard on it, a pearly white blade sprung out and batted the Sith's lightsaber blade away from him, the effect of the adegan crystal within the device calming Tanomas, allowing him to focus on fending off the other aged man.

"Oh I don't think so, I have bigger plans than the Alliance. A shame, really, I thought you of all people would understand defection." Graf spat, saluting his opponent with his lightsaber, activating the beacon behind his back.

[member="Castor Ren"] | [member="Isla Ashen"] | [member="Brennan Cabrol"] | [member="Darth Veles"] | [member="Siriwook"] | [member="Jamie Pyne"] | [member="Desmond C'artyom"] | [member="Aela Talith"] | [member="Samka Derith"] | [member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Tiland Kortun"]

 

[Darth Veles]

Location: Lothal, Cave


Darth Veles' amber eyes calmly continued to pierce the old man’s soul as the traitor struggled to break the telekinetic hold, his feeble skills no match for the crushing power of the dark side, even when the former admiral managed to retrieve his lightsaber and produce a swing. The amphibious Sith hardly felt it. Just to humour the weak and poorly trained [member="Tanomas Graf"], the vastly more powerful Sith lord allowed his crimson blade to be pushed aside, only to return to its original position immediately after, hovering in front of its prey like a viper ready to strike. Whatever the old man’s plans had been, failed, the honour of battling the Dark lord of the Sith ingloriously removed from him.

What was meant as an attempt at fighting back was merely fuel to the Sith lord’s power as the crushing grip tightened; a direct result of refusing to surrender orderly. The pressure would degenerate consciousness as blood flow would withdraw from the victim’s brain, leading to blacking out. Darth Veles held the poor man's life in his hands, but death would not be this traitor's fate. Not now, anyway, not by his hand. Stomping miserable insects was below him. Adding injury to insult, and showing the First Order lacked in tolerance for traitors, the Mon Cal drove his hot blade to the old man’s knee. A mere taste of what awaited the treacherous maggot in the future.

And Darth Veles was finally free to continue his journey to the entrance, unopposed, hoping [member="Taeli Raaf"] did not take offence at the slight delay.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie turned her head slightly, averting her eyes momentarily from Castor towards Aerion, surprised that the man had wound up at the same location. Then again, many of the passageways and tunnels interconnected, so perhaps he had simply walked in a longer circle to reach the same place. Regardless, she was neither thrilled nor disappointed to see him. Entirely apathetic would describe her reaction to his arrival. Her nose twitched, a small scowl appearing on her face as the man spoke in his typical condescending demeanor.

At least he's like this with everyone, I guess.

That brought her focus back to the Ren. There were things you didn't see often. Dark side practitioners skulking about Jedi covers were one. Another one however, was a fully grown adult man, with a rather pronounced figure in both height and weight leap through the air like a spiraling missile, up and over an objectively tall female wielding a plasma sword capable of, at least in theory, cutting someone in half with a lazy flick of the wrist. Two for two now, however.

The blonde stood stationary, a quick flinch raising her saber in a defensive maneuver as the man soared overhead and landed a short distance away from her. A shift of her ankles and hips turned her to face the new direction of the Ren just as he spoke to her and the Jedi Knight. "Resolving conflicts through nonviolence should always take precedence, regardless of the situation." Her eyes cast a glare back towards the Knight, now behind her, before returning to a more softened expression towards Castor.

"This needn't turn ugly." She said, her head shaking the blonde locks to scatter the bit of dust and sediment that had gathered in her hair from the rocky ceiling just above her head. "The crystals here must remain. They are meant for tapping into the light side of the Force."

[member="Aela Talith"] | [member="Castor Ren"] | [member="Desmond C'artyom"] | [member="Samka Derith"] | [member="Darth Veles"] | [member="Zark"] | [member="Siriwook"] | [member="Isla Ashen"] | [member="Perth Levov"] | [member="Tanomas Graf"] | [member="Tiland Kortun"] | [member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Brennan Cabrol"] | [member="Aerion Ivelisse"] | [member="D'vok Windroamer"]​

 

[Rhen Qel-Droma]

Lothal Temple


All the younglings and the Jedi around the grounds were ushered inside. It would take the better part of about a quarter of an hour to be sure to get everyone to safety, but drills like this had been done before. All of those who lived at the Lothal temple knew there was a risk at being so isolated from the Alliance. This risk led to specific safety measures and emergency drills to be put in place.

At the very least there was a small shield not unlike a planetary one that would encase the temple grounds. What was more concerning were the outlying lands and crystal caves with rich pure kyberite deposits. While these were important features that the Jedi needed to protect, they themselves had only been slowly and surely advancing security beyond the temple itself.

"Master Qel-Droma." a voice came from Rhen's right.

"Yes?"

"We have news that there might be some disturbances at the caverns."

Alarm grew over the elder Corellian's face.

"I see." he became pensive then.

"Do we have word who is out there?"

"I saw Master Talith leave not a few minutes ago."

A nod. He knew well of the Marshal. If anyone would have anything under control, it was she.

"Let's ensure the safety of the temple. Set us on alert and ensure we get a head count of everyone. I want everyone accounted for."

 

[Aerion Ivelisse]

Jamie was undoubtedly entirely correct. Non-violence should take precedence in almost any scenario. But if she was going to take the time to turn and glare at him, then he imagined she would've taken the time to realize that he simply didn't put any stock in her words. Not because of pride, but because she still intended to tell him what to do, how to act, in a situation like this. If he wouldn't listen to his Master, his father no less, why would he listen to some sassy rich girl? Besides, delivering a response would make them seem weak, unused to each other in a combat situation. A gap in the armour where there should be one. Responding would only make it larger, so he strode forwards, closer to [member="Castor Ren"], only by one or two steps, and had likely inadvertently put himself directly underneath the stalactites.

Dangerous, ooooh.

Aerion blinked.

He did the unthinkable.

The amethyst lightsabre disappeared and was clipped back onto his belt in a swift motion, an action practiced many times over.

"I'm only doing this so she is conscious on how much time is being wasted on being cordial." He said.

"Should I go over there and put the cuffs on, or will you let me save my energy?"

Ever the actor, continuing the charade of being a nonviolent soul, Aerion smiled, unmistakably, indents on his right and left cheeks appeared, undoubtedly the slightest of dimples were made noticeable. For a moment, it looked as if it were a genuine smile, at least, when you started from bottom to top. Once one took note of the cold blue eyes, communicating only one thing: 'You're not getting out of this.' In truth, the entire situation was only to make a mockery of the blonde girl. Not all of his free time was spent being a macho man in the mirror.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Location: Entrance of the crystal caves
Objective: Waiting

The empty spot in the currents of the Force that she was associating with her old friend had stopped... curious. It was near another presence that suddenly flared briefly in the Force, heightened emotions... and then the emptiness was moving closer again. He had delayed because he couldn't pass up the chance to strike someone he thought an enemy... that was rather rude of him to do if he had another meeting to keep.

On the outside, and to anyone's senses, she was tranquil... allowing the currents of the Force to swirl all around her and through her. More and more she was swirling away, letting it eddie into her being as she prepared for a possible conflict. Her old friend would likely use his tricks if a fight broke out, but he had no way to know how much or where she had been studying. There was something to be said about the pursuit of knowledge. Underneath though, she was impatient to get on with this... confrontation.

Eventually, the emptiness... the spot where the Force flowed around instead of through would draw near. She didn't even open her eyes yet, but she knew he was close.

"A long time... [member="Darth Veles"]."

 

[Samka Derith]

No sooner had Sam sent Kyrel Ren to investigate than trouble appeared, a cloud of dust accompanied a man falling from an upper level. She took a step back, shielding her tiny crystal in both hands. She looked at D'vok with wide, fearful eyes and moved a few steps closer to Isla for protection. At this point it was looking like their disguises may not hold and it wouldn't be long before she could drop the act of a terrified child and perhaps indulge in some bloodshed but for now she was intent to keep it going.

She remained silent, watching things unfold but ready to intervene in any capacity if needed, to defuse to situation or dispatch the enemy, whichever was more efficient. But then the droid arrived.

The odd machine walked towards them, even flirting with one of their number. Samka opened her mouth to address him, tell the machine to go about his business of... whatever that was yet the Force was telling her this was no coincidental appearance. Actually the Force was telling her nothing of this newcomer which was exactly what was alarming. Usually droids, while not alive, were still able to be detected in much the same way one can detect rocks, mountains, rivers and clouds. They're not alive, the Force does not flow through them but it detects them. This... machine was a void, it was more than dead. For now though... she'd pretend nothing was wrong.

"The exit would be that way," the teenager poked her head out round Isla Ashen and pointed back the way they came. "Your friend says he knows where to go."

But then the situation changed. There was a flash of anger within her as this man, D'vok, treated them with such disrespect. It wasn't just her affected by it, Kyrel Ren dropped his droid act and advanced menacingly with his blade withdrawn. The game was up.

Samka Derith walked forwards towards the intruders, with a new confidence in her steps. The fearful gaze replaced by cold fury. Still cradling the Kyber crystal in her arms, Sam sucked the light from it in full view of everyone. The clear crystal began to 'bleed' as the teenager imposed her dark will upon it. As she did, her skin paled and eyes morphed from brown to corrupted crimson. Her disguise had left and true self was there for all to see.

"There was no need to be quite. so. rude," her voice dripping with venom. "Kill them. Don't play around, just kill them and move on."

[member="Isla Ashen"] [member="Kyrel Ren"] [member="Castor Ren"] [member="Darth Veles"]​

[member="Aerion Ivelisse"] [member="Jamie Pyne"] [member="Rhen Qel-Droma"] @D'vok Windroamer [member="HK-36"] @Siriwook @Aela Talith​

​

OOC: Sorry if I forgot to tag anyone! There's a lot of us now!​

 

[Darth Veles]

The shadows eventually surrendered to the light and Darth Veles’ outline stepped out, still partially hidden as if clinging to the dark, damp cavern that would become someone’s sombre grave at the end of the day. Unlike its owner, the Sith lord’s signature and presence remained closed to others. Fresh emotions overwhelmed his mind upon sensing and seeing [member="Taeli Raaf"] alike, more sources of power to be added to his arsenal should a fight break out. He felt ready, prepared for that eventuality, still filled with passion after devastating the defector. One sweep of his hand and the dark hood covering his large head slid off, revealing the Mon Cal’s features, eyes never leaving the lone form that awaited him.

“Darth Arcanix,” came his benign reply, a hint of jovial excitement stealing into his tone tempered by the Dark lord’s typical smoothness, “My kindred Sith.”

Darth Veles’ cybernetic eye had thoroughly observed the petite figure before his attention shifted to her surroundings, letting the moment pass as he familiarized himself with the land. Once the Mon Cal’s warm gaze settled upon the woman again, he strode closer to the Jedi master, fully exposed to Lothal’s sun. A sincere smile crept into his expression, making the serene and calm look in his eyes slightly friendlier.

“You can rest easy; I am not here to hurt you or your current allies. Raise your hand against me though, and I shall destroy you. I trust your new code commands to settle this peacefully?"

There was a friendly scoff in these words, nothing but a joke about Taeli’s former and current allegiance.

Soft thuds of leather boots against the ground marked his march down the path leading from the gaping black hole. Gaze set on the horizon, muscles tense in anticipation, he stopped a few metres away from the purple-eyed Jedi. As if drawn by Lothal’s picturesque nature, he did not turn to Taeli again.

“Is there something you’d like to discuss, old friend?” Darth Veles demanded.
​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Ever the smooth gentleman, or at least outwardly showing that. As he spoke, she continued to keep her eyes closed and facing towards the entrance in a pose of meditation. There was no need to turn and face the Mon Calamari Sith Lord, the Force provided her with knowledge of where he walked and stood.

"No, you are here for other reasons," Taeli stated plainly, knowing it was a fact. "You and your current allies are here to pilfer kyber crystals. Foolish, my old friend. Very foolish. There are a number of worlds where the theft of kyber crystals would have gone unnoticed. But now..."

She would let the sentence hang, allowing the implications of such to grow on their own.

"Working with Dark Jedi... tsk tsk, whatever has become of your code, [member="Darth Veles"]," she continued, still not turning around and projecting nothing but benign calm. "I confess myself... disappointed you have thrown in your lot with their ilk. It might be a mercy to counter your threat of destruction if I rise to fight with an offer to assuage your ethics and quiet that conflict."

An overt barb, but coached in terms of playing on his belief system. To get him to either rise to the bait and explain more, or to... well she couldn't use the old adage of ruffling his feathers. Perhaps better words would be getting under his skin. One could almost say she was performing dun moch upon him, without a blow even being struck as of yet... if it came to that.

 

[Siriwook]

Siriwook hears the characteristic hum of another lightsaber ignition echoing off the stones. Lightsaber crystals whisper in the Force, and low voices obscured by too many other sounds and their echoes also travel down the hall. Siriwook quickens her pace back the way she came.

[member="Tanomas Graf"]'s body falls in a corridor off a fork in the caverns some space ahead of Siriwook. Hearing the body fall to the floor and smelling cauterized flesh, Siriwook can only assume someone has been hurt. She thinks of quickening her pace to where Tanomas has fallen, but cannot hurry--already has she witnessed the many holes in the cavern walls, any of which may give way. And, now, with so many people in the cave, extracting from the stone? A cave in seems likely. Siriwook did not like cave-ins. More than once while hiding on Wasskah when she was smaller, she'd had some animal's burrow come falling down around her, nearly suffocating her, forcing her to escape, noisily--and that was merely dirt. The weight of these stones would be much worse. But, then, she has the Force on her side now. Is anything impossible with the Force?

Siriwook reaches Tanomas' body and kneels next to it. As she looks him over, she notes the cut of his outfit, the tone of his muscles. She has helped enough soldiers to know--this man was likely an officer. He would be wearing something to designate his rank somewhere on his person. Sure enough, she sees a GA insignia--and an electronic device--a transponder? But, that's not important right now. Who he is can only ever be secondary to saving his life.

Allowing her recent medical training to kick in, she notices the man still breathes, but has passed out. Perhaps he hit his head and dropped his light saber? However, the wound on his leg looks deliberate--precise, and designed to inflict the most pain. Siriwook would have to address that before anything else. Reaching out with the Force to create cold on the nerve endings surrounding the wound would help. One good thing about lightsaber wounds was, they rarely bled and the cuts were clean. Siriwook places her hands over the area of the wound and, breathing deep, reaching inside her core of power, she attempts to heal him. She feels weary, however, from hours spent digging in the earth.

As if vibrating to get her attention, the stone she carries suddenly becomes part of Siriwook's awareness. Can she somehow use the stone to augment her connection to the Force? Would holding it make her stronger somehow? She is not sure, but she tries anyway, holding the stone in one hand while focusing on healing with the other. Charred flesh stirs from blackened knots to pink chords of muscle, white threads of fat, and strings of nerves beneath her hand. As her focus on healing intensifies, this section of the cave lights dimly with the eerie green glow of spirit ichor as muscle knits on to bone and skin stretches over fat, all joined together at the site of a terrible scar--it would still be the bacta tank for sure, but, perhaps the older man would be able to walk.

Siriwook hopes the undoubtedly considerable pain he must now feel does not jar him too suddenly back into consciousness. After all, waking up with a wookiee hovering over your leg would scare any human, even if that wookiee were as cute as Siriwook. He is nearly awake now--he will need reassuring and answers. Gently, she strokes his head with a furry hand.

"[Relax, soldier. You're safe now.]" she says to his stirring consciousness.

But not even Siriwook relaxes, as she worries about what may happen if whoever cut Tanomas' leg comes back.

​

Spoiler

Out of town fRENds​

[member="Isla Ashen"] | [member="Samka Derith"]​

[member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Brennan Cabrol"]
[member="Castor Ren"]
​

(And Sith [member="Darth Veles"])​

​

Local fRENds​

[member="Aela Talith"] | [member="Desmond C'artyom"]​

[member="Jamie Pyne"] | [member="Siriwook"]​

[member="Zark"] | [member="Tanomas Graf"]​

[member="Taeli Raaf"] | [member="Thyra Sunborne"]​

[member="Aerion Ivelisse"] | [member="D'vok Windroamer"]​

​

​

 

[Darth Veles]

He did not take her words about his personal code lightly. Proving she knew him all too well, she cut where it hurt, provoking him. Anger and irritation flashed through the Mon Cal’s glassy orbs, fingers gripping the hilt of his weapon tighter. Lashing out in fury was prevented before it could happen though. He controlled himself too well for that. Deep breaths took in the cold air of Lothal and Taeli’s words suddenly meant nothing. With a Jedi-like serenity, he conquered the temptation of attacking, but before the passionate sensation vanished from his being, the Sith lord turned it into more fuel for his burning furnace of power. Darth Veles was no fool; each insult and jab only meant more strength for him in the future, as Arcanix would find out.

“Come on, lady Arcanix. You wouldn’t kill an old friend.” He stated, breaking his passive stance and turning around, burning gaze now firmly fixed upon her back, washing over her body, judging his chances against her again.

“On the other hand, I have a feeling you won’t let me leave either. And not because of the crystals. What is it you want from me?” He voiced a question without expecting to ever hear the answer.

But the living crystals certainly played role in this. At least for him – his body burned in excitement to finally study one, delve into unlocking its secrets and learn how to utilize its hidden power. Just the thought sent shivers of excitement down his spine. And jealousy, too. The Sith lord did not doubt [member="Taeli Raaf"] had already done so, he craved to wield that knowledge as well. He needed it to continue, to survive. One step forward brought him closer to the woman, enough for a lightsaber to strike her down should he decide to walk the aggressive path.

“Thank you, by the way. For the flattery. It is nice you consider me Sith and all other are dark Jedi. If only your old colleagues from the One Sith could hear you now!” Darth Veles teased.

He had yet to tell her about embracing Darth Bane's philosophy, but such pleasant surprises would have to wait for later.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

He was quick to recover, but there it was... that flash of irritation. It may have been a moment, but it had been a victory of sorts to her. A sign that, while Veles contained a great degree of self-control, there were things that got to him. Useful information for any future encounter, if the time called for it of course. She still did not turn to face him, or move in anyway... but she could feel his gaze upon her, studying her... sizing her up. She would relish in the moment before finally responding to the spoken word.

"If my old colleagues could hear me, they would likely decry you as the traitor to the Sith ways," Taeli replied, her voice measured and her words chosen carefully. "You never were one for following any of the old traditions of the Sith, such as the Rule of Two or the Rule of One. No, you have always been about your personal code and that was never something many Sith would ever accept."

Another barb, more veiled and still probing for a chink. To get more information. Veles knew her well too, knew she always was striving to learn... to gain an advantage, however slight.

"And why do you believe I want something from you, besides to stop the theft of a kyber crystal... and the secrets that are contained within such a treasure?" she asked. "I assume you have one on your person, hidden away. Otherwise, you would have kept a lady waiting longer than you did."

She did not directly answer if she would kill an old friend or not, because she wanted him to wonder about it. In such a tense discussion, what was said might be important... but what was not said might be even more so.

 

[Darth Veles]

“Mhm.” The Sith lord muttered, his smile growing wider and indicating [member="Taeli Raaf"] had missed the mark this time despite being completely right about their old associates.

It wasn’t the just the understanding she wanted to bait him into a mistake – he simply heard nothing to grow upset about. The Mon Cal did not care what other Sith thought of him, whether they considered him Sith or Jedi. Given Darth Veles himself recognized zero of his old colleagues as Sith, the fact they’d most likely declare him a traitor to traditional Sith ways left him unfazed. Words and accusations made by dark Jedi held no relevance; people who threw away knowledge instead of using it were fools, violating the Sith ways and therefore unworthy of being considered anything else than liabilities and pretenders. He was going to kill every single one of them, dealing out the punishment for unrightfully claiming the Sith name.

Stepping closer, his boots no longer producing any sound as he treaded carefully, the Sith lord leaned forward as if he wished to share a sensitive secret and lowered his voice to let it become a whisper. The Force revealed none in vicinity, but caves had a way of ricocheting sounds from one wall to another. On the other hand, if someone suddenly walked out, the strange sight would undoubtedly raise many questions; a Sith lord talking to one of the most decorated Jedi masters. While the Jedi code strongly encouraged avoiding violence, such a close vicinity suggested there was something more between the two.

“Because if there was no theft in the first place, you’d have no reason to stop me,” Darth Veles pointed out, “And as long as the most esteemed Darth Arcanix shares what she knows about kyber crystals, I’ll have zero reason to go and take one, which means all conflict can be avoided. If you tell me what you know, I'll be on my way.”

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She gave an inward smile as he came closer, whispering his offer.

"And what, pray tell, would give me incentive to do that?" she asked, finally turning her head to face him, violet eyes looking into the mismatched ones of Veles. A hand would reach up, covering Veles's own in a light hold. "I see nothing in this... offer that I would presumably gain. You assume, my old friend, that you'll be able to leave the planet. Now that the Jedi are alerted to a problem in the crystal caves, you can expect no one will be allowed to leave the world until... the disturbance is dealt with. Your... colleagues have become rather noticeable all of a sudden."

She would remain sitting in her meditative pose though, a picture of Jedi grace and serenity.

"Leave the crystal you took behind, and I'll forget I saw you [member="Darth Veles"]. Refuse, and we have an impasse that unless I gain equal knowledge in exchange... well..."

 

[Darth Veles]

The crystals – their unwillingness, even fear to be claimed by a dark side practitioner. A very curious feature about them, unfortunately so new to the Sith lord that he had failed to consider the possibility of his treasure calling out for help in soft, yet somewhat audible cries to the Jedi nearby. Unknowingly giving his loot’s existence away by getting closer to [member="Taeli Raaf"], Darth Veles lost his chance to pretend to be leaving Lothal bare-handed. This contained the possibility of easily turning into a costly mistake, far worse than he could afford. Sighing, he gently placed both hands on the sitting woman’s shoulders, giving her something resembling a back massage as he contemplated the next move. With his sweet little lie shattered, the Sith lord gave some thought to all possibilities his Sith-Jedi friend presented.

“You know I can disappear, become anyone. Even if all vessels are forbidden from leaving Lothal, such ban cannot continue forever. The planet is lush, large, even men of lesser skill can easily disappear long enough for the situation to change.” Darth Veles swiftly declared to partially break her argument, but one factor continued to sail on without trouble.

Nobody would ever stop him from getting away. Nobody – except for one particular woman. Looking down, watching her raven hair, the Sith lord once more realized how powerful she must have grown since their last encounter. The possibility of a fight suddenly seemed inevitable. Definitely an option, but not one to be reached before exhausting others that were considerably less drastic. Darth Veles was a slippery creature, and albeit not cowardly, tended to avoid unnecessary conflict if better options could be reached by a simple conversation. Even with that fact dismissed, Darth Arcanix presented a fount of knowledge - her death would be infinitely tragic for the Sith. Killing her equalled burning years of her work, something the Sith lord would rather claim for himself than destroy. As such, the former Sith lady’s words caught his attention, spinning the gears in his head as he furiously went over what could possibly be offered in return.

“Equal knowledge,” repeated the Sith lord, nodding firmly, “What would you consider to share the same value, Arcanix?”

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Darth Veles"]

"And you know I would spend my time here searching for you, to make sure you didn't leave with that crystal," Taeli countered. He would know she would have the time and resources necessary to hunt him down, between being a Master of the Force, her knowledge of exotic techniques, and her company itself. If she wanted to make sure Veles didn't leave the planet with his prize, she very well could do that. His hands on her shoulders might unnerve someone, but they weren't at the point of conflict... yet. It was heading that way, considering what she valued the knowledge of what the kyber crystals could do at.

"For the secrets contained within the kyber crystals, nothing short of the location of a holocron would suffice for me or knowledge on the inner workings of your allies," Taeli replied, looking up at the Mon Calamari. "There is a reason why they are guarded so much by the Jedi, and it's not only because they work nicely as saber crystals."

She wouldn't elaborate of course, because then what would the point of a trade of information be. She was assuming that Veles wouldn't give up the location of a holocron, if he knew where one was that is. He was like her, a seeker of knowledge, and a holocron were among the most sought after prizes. She would know, she owned three rather dangerous ones herself. The inner workings of his allies might be more tempting to give, considering his dislike of Dark Jedi, but she figured he might be protective of that as well because he might be running a longer game.

 

[Darth Veles]

“Hmm.”

He immediately dismissed the idea of giving away what he knew about his allies. Such move would have made more sense if the Sith lord worked with fools who branded themselves Sith, as those were infinitely expendable. The Ren, on the other hand, happened to be the subject of his study. Their tactics, strengths, weaknesses, rituals, all was valuable and thus essential for him to keep in secret. Perhaps he could lie, feed his old colleague fake information and vanish before she confirmed. Definitely a valid option, yet such method only paid off in the short run; declaring himself deceitful would inevitably ruin all future trades with the Sith lady and severely damage the brittle layer of trust between them. Even Sith needed to display a certain amount of fairness to each other lest the order descended into a downwards spiral of self-destructive betrayal and back-stabbing.

“I don’t think that’d be a good deal, Arcanix,” Darth Veles declared, his hand gripping her shoulder tighter as he crouched to be at the same level as the sitting woman, “A holocron for you to discover? You’d need to give me more for such a potent prize.”

Oh, he certainly owned a nice holocron [member="Taeli Raaf"] would undoubtedly enjoy, but exchanging the key to immortality for a kyber crystal was a particularly one-sided trade. No – nothing in the entire galaxy had enough power to persuade him into giving it away. Knowledge equaled power, empowering a rival Sith meant weakening oneself in their deadly competition. While Arcanix was a worthy adversary at least, unlike the pretenders, giving her that much of an advantage went directly against what Sith principles stood for. Fortunately enough, Darth Veles’ large head contained a name, one of another holocron owner. How the Jedi master dealt with him held little relevance to the Sith lord.

“I can tell you who has the holocron of Darth Vectivus if you’re interested – provided I get to keep the crystal and a little something more. What can you offer me?” The Mon Cal asked, his large eyes never leaving the Sith lady.
​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"I don't see much need for Vectivus's holocron," Taeli sighed, getting to her feet now. "I run a successful business and know how to create illusions, if the rumors are true about what Vectivus was. No, I'm afraid I was never interested in his teachings to add to my base."

The inevitable had arrived, but there were no hard feelings for what was to take place. Just some disappointment. She had hoped [member="Darth Veles"] would have more that he would be willing to offer, but apparently not. His defense of those he was working with was surprising, but his defense of any valuable holocron he had knowledge was understandable. There might be hints that she held one or more holocrons, and she was sure one of her deceased foes had left information pointing towards her holding a specific one. No matter, no matter.

"It would appear we are truly at an impasse then, my friend," she said, unclipping one of the hand guarded lightsabers on her belt. "No hard feelings, I must say, but I have a duty to fulfill and I cannot allow you to leave with that prize concealed in your cloak."

There was a snap-hiss and a purple blade of amethyst sprung to life in her hand, which she brought up into a respectful salute.

"Last chance, my friend, leave the crystal and walk away... or I will have to retake it through other means."